The Perks of Losing
by Courtney The Baller
Summary: Kenny makes a bet with Clyde. The bet? Get the stoic bastard known as Craig Tucker to fall in love with him. He think's it'll be a piece of cake; but what happens when Kenny starts to fall for Craig? Rated M for sexual content, language, drug and alcohol use.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note - I do not own the image or South Park in general. Criticism is wanted. (Just don't be mean haha.) Also, thanks for reading! :)**

* * *

The day had started out normal. Well, normal for the strange little town called South Park.

Kenneth McCormick had already died; it wasn't even fucking lunch yet. Although, Death did indeed follow Kenny. This time it wasn't as bad. Gun shot to the head while a bank robber had ran by on the sidewalk. The worst moments to die was when he was with friends. "Oh my, God! They killed Kenny!" Stan would shout in horror. To which Kyle would reply with, "You bastards!" The cycle _never fucking ended._

Kenny figured he would be used to dying. After all, he had been doing it for seventeen years now. But no, it always sucked balls. When you're dying, it's painful. Then, comes the numb shock. Finally ending with darkness. After Kenny had died, he usually ended up in Hell. Occasionally he would end up in Heaven; not often though.

The blonde haired boy landed with a thud on the fiery ground of Hell, suppressing a groan as he stood up on his long legs. His blue eyes took in his surroundings, seeing a couple people he already knew. Satan sat there, torching a guy who Kenny had learned raped three young girls, with Saddam Hussein bugging him. Most likely about having sex. Close to his father stood the Prince of Darkness, otherwise known as Damien.

Damien was a bit of a prick. He always had a comment to make when Kenny died. _"What was it this time? Trampled by elephants?"_ Kenny would always roll his eyes and try to ignore the boy. After all, he didn't stay in Hell long. Maybe for an hour or two. It depends. The longest he had ever stayed dead was for about a month. It was torcher for Kenny to watch as his friends tried to build a latter to Heaven when really he was stuck in Hell.

Damien's head snapped quickly to meet Kenny's, a large smirk forming on his face as he walked towards the blonde. Damien had ebony hair with matching eyes that felt as if they were piercing your soul. "What was it this time. No, wait. Don't tell me. Stabbed?" the boy grinned an evil smirk. McCormick rolled his eyes but had a small grin, "Close but no. Bullet to the brain." Damien nodded, "Well, at least it was quick."

Conversations with Damien were always short. Kenny watched as Damien strode off back to his father. Kenny tousled his hair around, trying to fix it a bit. Although, it didn't really matter how it looked. People never really paid attention while they're on fire or have knives sticking out of their body.

He wasn't sure why Satan never torchered him like the others. Maybe because of when he was young and helped Satan out with "boyfriend troubles." Kenny sat down on the ground, watching as a flying demon bird soared across the sky. This place was honestly weird as fuck. It was times like this that Kenny wished he went to church more often.

_Maybe I should go to church when I get back with Karen. She would love that._

Kenny was extremely protective over his thirteen-year-old sister, Karen. After Kevin was sent to prison, Kenny felt the need to protect her from their parents. Over the years his parents drug and drinking habits had become worst. Kenny honestly didn't mind taking a couple hits and kicks from his dad though, if it meant protecting Karen.

It felt like his life had taken for the worst his eighth grade year. Kevin had came home late, eyes blood shot from drugs and alcohol. Kevin was a pretty big dude, too. He had a tattoo trailing around his bicep and had a cold hard stare with brown eyes as cold as the ground.

Kenny had sat on the couch with Karen as they watched a dog show on their shitty television. She loved animals, so Kenny figured why not. They sat there as she watched the dogs walk around while Kenny just stared blankly at the TV, wondering when the next time he'll die will be.

Kevin had burst through the door, a secret buried deeply within him. "Ken?" he called, making the then fourteen-year-old jump. Kevin hadn't spoken directly to his younger brother in a little over a year, so this was new. "Yeah?" Kenny called as he peaked his head over the back of the couch. Kevin walked up to him, yanking the boy up from the couch and planting him firmly on the ground. He leaned his mouth close to Kenny's ear. So close, he felt Kevin's warm and vodka smelling breath tickle his ear lobe.

"Listen and listen good. Those dumb ass South Park cops come to the door, tell them I ain't here. Y'all understand?" he asked as he gripped the back of Kenny's neck with force. Kenny quickly nodded as Kevin threw his younger brother to the ground, stomping up the stairs. The young boy stood up on wobbly legs with tears welling in his eyes.

"Kenny?" Karen's small voice broke through his near-breakdown. Kenny looked at her after he had composed his face, "Yeah, Karen?" With her big, brown eyes full of worry, she told him not to do as Kevin said. And when the cops came, Kenny told them exactly where he was.

**_"I'm gonna fuckin' kill you Kenneth McCormick! Just you wait!"_**

At that moment, Kenny felt my body start to vibrate, a sign he knew well that he was about to go back. With a final glance from Damien, Kenny was gone.

* * *

The blonde seventeen year old shot up from his bed, covered in sweat and shaking uncontrollably. His hand tangle itself into his messy blonde hair. He looked at his bedside clock, gasping as he noticed the time. It was almost three, and he had to pick Karen up from the Jr. High school in ten minutes.

Kenneth McCormick threw the covers off his body, dashing to his closet and throwing on a black T-Shirt and some dark jeans. He threw on his ratty orange parka, leaving the hood down for a change. Kenny combed his hair quickly with his fingers, leaving it messy looking.

Running out of the house, he ran to his car. Kenny hoped into his shitty Chevy Vega, a car that barely worked and was a hand-me-down. He flipped the keys in the ignition, groaning when it startled and popped before turning on all the way. He would speed to get there on time, but the thing barely went over fifty.

As Kenny made his way towards the school, he couldn't help but think of what will happen tonight. Kenny used to joke around with the guys about his family. The McCormick Family Fight Club. The guys would sort of laugh while giving each other worried looks. The only one who would tell Kenny how he honestly felt was Kyle.

Kyle Broflovski was like a mother hen. He always worried about everyone but himself. Kyle wasn't the tallest in the group or the one with the most muscle, but damn that boy had some major brains. Everyone already knew the boy was going to Harvard, well that is if the fiery red head doesn't change his mind when his best friend finally tells him how he _really_ feels about Kyle.

That's right, Kenny was talking about Stan Marsh. He's the jock his small group of friends. The boy plays football, basketball and baseball. He's seriously one of the best athletes to ever go to South Park High. With much observation, Kenny had quickly learned Stan's secret about Kyle. Although, Stan didn't know Kenny knew.

Eric Cartman. Well, Cartman was a fat ass fucker who was always a bitch to everyone. He had been that way since Kenny had known him. Cartman was still fat and an ass. Although, as he's gotten older, Cartman has slightly matured. Not very much though.

Then there was Kenny McCormick. In his group, he was known as the man whore. The boy who could probably get any girl or guy he wanted. It was well known in school that Kenny was bisexual. Ever since he had gotten together with Leopold Stotch. Kenny had felt terrible after leading Butters on, but Butters was very quick to get over it.

Kenny honestly didn't like being called a slut or whore. Truthfully, Kenny had actually only had sex with three girls and two guys. Yet, people still labeled him. Kenny was never one for labels. Why give someone a label that they don't really live up to? _Or one that makes them feel disgusting and hate themselves?_

Kenny had a rough time freshman year, it was the first time he truly became depressed and killed himself. He remembered how he cut deeper and deeper until finally the blood just drained out of him. Kenny shivered at the thought. He had promised himself that he would never go back to those days. Never.

Finally, after what felt like driving forever, Kenny pulled up towards the school. He stepped out of the car and looked around for Karen. Kenny couldn't find her anywhere. Yeah, he was a little late. But not fucking thirty minutes late. Before Kenny had the chance to panic, a horn blasted as it pulled up beside him. It was a nice looking blue truck.

Craig Tucker sat behind the wheel, looking at Kenny with those blank hazel eyes as he rolled down his window. The back door opened and Karen's brown head popped out. She thanked Craig for waiting with her before walking around to the passenger side of Kenny's car. Kenny couldn't help but hate how Craig Tucker had pulled up right beside his car. It literally made his car look like a piece of shit on wheels. "I didn't want to leave her here alone," Craig's voice broke Kenny's thoughts. Kenny nodded, slightly shocked that Craig Tucker was even talking to him.

Craig was a stoic bastard that hated Kenny and his friends since forth grade. Eric came up with a "brilliant" plan to make a pan flute band in Peru and we used Tucker's birthday money. Yeah, it didn't turn out so well. Ever since then, Craig barely talked to us unless he was forced to.

"Why are you at the Jr. High?" Kenny's mouth asked, although what he really wanted to do was tell him thank you then leave. The boy with the charcoal colored hair covered by a blue hat with a yellow pom-pom gave a sarcastic smirk, although it was shocking Craig Tucker was capable of smiling. "I have a sister in seventh grade. She's best friends with Karen," Craig informed, shocking the blonde. Without thinking, Kenny asked, "You have a sister?"

Craig rolled his eyes as he said, "There's a lot you don't know about me, McCormick." And with that, Craig Tucker had sped off. Leaving Kenny shocked and curious.

* * *

About ten minutes later, Kenny was parked outside the high school stadium. Kenny had dropped Karen off at a friend's house. So she wouldn't be home alone. Kenny couldn't stand the thought of her at home without him there as well. With a low groan, Kenny got out of his car and went to the trunk. After digging around for a moment he finally found his football pads, helmet and practice jersey.

He got them out and jogged to the locker room. _Of fucking course, I would be late to practice a day before one of the biggest games of the season_, Kenny thought as he opened the locker room door to find the place empty. He quickly changed out of his clothes and into his practice uniform and cleats. Kenny shoved his clothes into his dirty duffle bag and put it in a locker.

He walked out the door and onto the field, all eyes on him. "McCormick!" Coach Anderson shouted from across the field, "Where were you? You're fifteen minutes late!" Kenny's blue eyes meet the brown eyes of a snickering Eric Cartman. He rolled his eyes but shouted back to the coach, "Sorry! I had to get my little sister from school!"

Kenny hated that no one ever remembered he died._ "Where were you today, Kenny?" "You missed a whole day of school, dude!"_ And he always had to make up an excuse. The coach shook his head, then told Kenny to run a couple laps to warm up.

Running was always the easiest part. It took little thought or strength to do it. As Kenny ran around the field, he'd get the occasional glance. Maybe a worried look from Stan or Kyle. By the time he was done running his laps, he hopped into line as the went over plays. Being one of the skinniest and fastest kids at South Park High didn't give him many options in positions. So, Kenny was the starting running back.

* * *

"Dude, where the hell were you? You missed half the damn day!" Stan huffed as the four boys walked into the locker room, sweating their asses off from an intense practice. Kenny shrugged his shoulders, "I just didn't feel like going." Kyle rolled his eyes, "Damn it, Kenny. You're already failing chemistry." Kenny said nothing as he grabbed his bag from his locker and started to strip his pads off. He didn't care who really saw him naked or not. Although, it bothered him when someone made a comment about how malnourished he looked.

As he slid his dark jeans on, he noticed his friends start to kind of circle him. His eyes looked up to see his friends with serious faces; even Cartman had the serious look! "Woah, you guys know I only strip for cash," Kenny joked, although his playful smile fell when he got no response from his friends. Kyle sighed, "Kenny. Sit. We need to talk." Kenny did as told, sitting on the wooden bench and watching his friends with weary eyes, "What's up?"

"Dude, we're worried about you," Stan voiced as his dark blue eyes looked into Kenny's light ones. Kenny looked away from them, feeling uncomfortable around his best friends. With the shake of his head, Kenny stood up. "I'm fine," Kenny growled in an angry manner as he slid on his shirt.

Kenny was suddenly pissed. He was pissed that his friends didn't know he died constantly. Kenny was pissed that his parents were druggies. Kenneth McCormick was pissed that God had cursed him.

"Come on, Kinny," Cartman said with the roll of his eyes, "don't get all pissy that you're friends care." Kenny swallowed, a lump forming in his throat. _Crying shows weakness_, Kenny thought to himself, _don't you dare fucking cry_. He took a shallow breath as he slid on his parka and shoved past Kyle. With a final glance towards his friends, Kenny whispered, "I'm fine." Although, his eyes told the real story.


	2. Chapter 2

**So sorry it took for what felt like forever to update! It's hard to fit in writing with my busy schedule. But thank you for the support I've been getting with this story! : ) **

**Disclaimer - I do not own South Park.**

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_**Kenny McCormick**_

_Once upon a time, there was a young boy. His name was Kenneth McCormick. Kenny grew up in a very poor home, his father spending the money they got from welfare on alcohol and his mother was the parent that loved them. Note how love was in past tense._

Kenny snorted as he pulled into the driveway, Karen in the passenger seat with a worried look as she gazed towards the poorly made garage. His father and mother were home.

The blonde breathed deeply through his nose, trying to calm his already shot nerves. He didn't want beaten tonight. Kenny was already pissed off that his friends were worried about him. Kenny felt like he didn't need worried about.

With clenched teeth, he opened his car door. Karen grabbed her book bag from the back seat and slid the straps over her shoulders. They walked towards the house in silence; the only sound made was the soft crunch of snow beneath the siblings' feet.

As Kenny's hand came to rest on the dinged up door knob, he leaned his head down to Karen's height. "If things get out of hand, run up to my room and lock the door. Don't let mom or dad in, just me," Kenny whispered, a distressed smile on his face as Karen glanced up at him. She nodded her head after a moment. They braced themselves as the knob was twisted and the door was pushed open.

Kenny's eyes roamed the small living room, finally landing on his father who was sitting on the couch with a beer bottle in hand. His blue button up was dirty as usual. His sandy looking hair poked out from underneath his hat.

His dad's bloodshot brown eyes looked away from the television and towards Kenny and his daughter. Stuart McCormick smirked as he raised up from his seat. Kenny felt his bicep muscles clench up under his parka. _It was gonna be one of those nights._

"Look, Hon! There he is!" Mr. McCormick shouted drunkenly as he staggered towards his son. Kenny slid his body in front of Karen's as she stood there in fright. "Go lay down, Dad. You're drunk." Stuart laughed as he pinched Kenny's left cheek hard, making the boy scowl. "You don't tell me what to do. You're not even my real son."

It was always the same reply. Just because Kenny didn't have brown or red hair and had blue eyes instead of brown eyes like his parents, his father always accused him of not being his real son. Claiming that Mrs. McCormick had cheated on him long ago. What used to happen is that his mom would take up for Kenny. Telling his dad that Kenny was Stuart's son, now she just stood and watched as Mr. McCormick beat the shit out of her child. Drugs fucked them up.

"Dad. Seriously," Kenny muttered as he tried to shove past his dad; his hand clasping his sister's arm. He felt rough hands grasp the back of his shirt and slam him to the ground. Kenny's wide sky blue eyes looked for Karen, making him sigh in relieve as he seen her retreating backside run up the steep staircase.

"You don't tell me what the hell to do, boy!" Stuart shouted as he jerked his son up by the collar of his parka. Kenny was standing for no less than five seconds before he felt his father's balled up fist connect with his eye. Kenny's back was literally against the wall.

The skin around Kenny's eye burned and stung, already swelling. "You live in my house, you go by my rules. Rule one: Don't fucking tell me what to do." Kenny's dad slammed his fist into Kenny's stomach once, bringing Kenny to his knees as he fought to regain his breath. Stuart spit on him before leaving the room.

Kenny struggled to breath as he stood on his now weak legs. He licked his cracked lips as he walked towards the stairs while his hands gripped his stomach. Kenny had to check on Karen, not worried about his well-being at the moment. As he wobbled up the stairs, he thought of tomorrow. How bad is his eye going to look tomorrow?

Kenny stood in front of his door, knocking softly. "Karen. It's me, Kenny." He listened as the soft patter of footsteps made their way to the door. He heard the click of the lock and the door was swung open. Karen roughly grabbed his sleeve and pulled him inside. The sound of the door being locked was clear in the air and soon enough, his sister grasped onto him as she softly sobbed into his hoodie.

Kenny walked backwards until he found the end of his bed in the dim room, sitting down with Karen never releasing him. "Shh," Kenny whispered into her hair as he rubbed her back. This was a common routine. "I'm fine, Kare." His little sister sniffled as she pulled away. Tears stained her blotchy cheeks as she inspected Kenny's face.

"K-Kenny. Your f-f-face is getting swollen. I should really get you some ice," Karen stuttered as she tried to get up. Kenny lightly shoved her back down. "No. It's not the right time to go down there. I will tonight when they're asleep," Kenny lied smoothly to calm his worked up sister. Karen shuttered lightly as she nodded. "Sleep in my room tonight. I'll get you your pajamas."

Kenneth stood and crossed the room, unlocking and opening the door as quietly as he could. He walked out of the room and crossed the narrow hall towards his sister's room. The walls surrounding him were a light tinted pink with princess décor still covering area from when she was five. Kenny huffed as he looked around the room for her pajamas. Piles of clothing laid strung throughout the room. _I'll have to wash these soon,_ Kenny thought to himself as he found a clean pair of clothes for her to sleep in. He left the room, tip-toeing to his and relocking the door after it had been shut.

Karen caught the clothes her brother tossed her. Kenny turned as Karen quickly changed from her school clothes to her sleepwear. "I'm good," Karen informed as she crawled to the top of Kenny's bed to lay down. Kenny moved across the room and tucked his younger sister in. He laid his body on top of the covers as Karen snuggled closer to her big brother.

Kenny prayed his sister would fall asleep quickly. He felt the absolute need to get away from this damned house. "Ken?" Karen murmured sleepily. Kenny raised an eyebrow unseen in the dark room, "Yeah?" Karen was silent for a bit, making Kenny wonder if she had fallen asleep. Finally, she spoke, "When you turn eighteen and are able to leave, will you take me with you?" Kenny felt the corners of his lips turn upwards slightly as he answered, "I promise, I would never leave you here."

That must have put her to ease because she was soon snoring lightly. Kenny looked at his sister, smiling slightly at how young a person can look while asleep. Kenny carefully stood from the bed, fearing he would wake Karen. Once he was standing, he slid his boots on that he had kicked off before climbing into the bed and made his way towards the window in his room. He flipped the lock, raising the window and flinching as it squeaked. He peaked towards the bed, sighing in relief that Karen was still sleeping.

Kenny was quick to climb out of the window, shivering violently as a cold gust of wind and snow hit his face. He shut the window and made the quick decision to go to Stark's Pond. As his feet clapped quietly on the sidewalk, he pulled his good over his head. It covered his blonde hair completely as he tugged on the strings so it closed over his mouth.

"_You can barely understand what the retard is saying." "What did you say, Kenny?" _People always seemed to have a comment about the way he wore his hood. But, at least he wasn't freezing his ass off is this fucked up little town.

Headlights suddenly flashed into his vision, making him squint for a moment before a truck rattled past him. Kenny rubbed his eyes to get rid of the blue little dots that now played in his vision.

The brown boot on Kenny's foot kicked at a rock as he walked farther from his shitty life and closer towards a place where he could be alone. After a little while, Kenny found the bench he always sat on. He brushed the snow off and took a seat, slouching slightly as he sat down. His gloved hand reached into his pocket and pulled out his silver Razor flip phone. _"Jesus, Kinny. You're so not updated on what's cool," _Cartman had once teased as he waved around his brand new iPhone.

Kenny sighed in frustration as he turned on his shitty little phone, then scrolled through the missed text messages he hadn't bothered to look at.

**Kyle : Kenny. If you get this, I just wanted to apologize. We shouldn't have tried to make you talk about something you didn't feel comfortable with. Call me when you want to talk.**

Kenny clicked out of the message and checked the time on his phone. It was almost midnight; probably not the best time to call Kyle back. He clicked back onto the messages to see another one from BeBe.

**BeBe : Text me when you want to hook up again. I miss you're huge dick inside me. ;)**

Kenny's teeth gritted. Ever since he had hooked up with BeBe last year, she never seemed to leave him alone. _And they call me the whore,_ the bitter thought entered Kenny's head. He finally checked the last message on his phone.

**Cartman : Hey practice 2morrow is canceled. Coach said to tell you.**

Kenny frowned as he turned his phone off yet again.

_I hate my fucking life, so much. Why can't I just stay dead? Why am I such a freak? Why don't people remember when I die? Will I out live all my friends? How long do I have to go through with this misery? _Millions of questions flashed into Kenny's mind, only pissing him off even more.

Maybe next time he died he'd have to talk to Satan or God, whichever place he went next time.

Snow started to fall, the street lamp illuminating the snow as it fell to the ground. Kenny loosened his hood, letting it fall off his head as the snowflakes built up in his hair. These were the types of little moments he loved. The moments where he could forget about his home, South Park, and life in general.

The sound of a twig breaking snapped him out of his daze, his eyes scanning the area as he slowly rose from his seat. "Hello?" Kenny called out dumbly, wanting to smack himself as soon as the word escaped his lips. Everyone knew that in a horror movie, you never call out to the killer.

"Easy, tiger," a nasally voice called out. Kenny's eyebrows drew together in confusion, "Who is that?" The blonde almost jumped out of his skin as Craig Tucker suddenly popped out from behind a large willow tree near the bench he sat at. His blue hat was tugged down and pure white snow was covering his head and shoulders.

"How long have you been there?" Kenny asked bluntly. He didn't feel the need to be nice at the moment. _Besides, Craig hates me. I'm pretty positive he won't be the nicest to me either, _Kenny thought. Craig had that dumb ass smirk on his face as he walked over to the bench and brushed snow off at the other end, staying as far away from Kenny as possible. "Just long enough to hear you muttering to yourself like a loon. What's up?"

_What's up? __**What's up?**_ Kenny was shocked that Craig would even want to talk to him, but shook it off and simply answered, "Nothing. Why are you here?" A dark scowl formed on the ebony haired teen, his gray eyes darkening. "Probably the same reason you're here. To get away from home." Kenny looked at the boy in curiosity. It seemed like almost every ting Craig said to him made him confused him.

The two teens sat down in a slightly awkward silence, staring out at the pond. Kenny awkward played with his fingers while Craig just sat there, obviously pissed off about something. Finally, Craig asked Kenny a question, "What happened to your eye?" Kenny chewed on the inside of his lip as he lied, "Football practice." Craig snorted and Kenny wasn't sure if it was his way of laughing or what. "What? Did you get beat up afterwards?" Craig said, Kenny figuring it was supposed to be a joke or something.

Kenny let out a short laugh, "Yeah, the football had something against me." It was silent again, making Kenny feel the need to fill the stillness of the air. "So, what was wrong with your house? I mean, the reason why you're here?" Kenny rubbed the back of his neck. Craig looked at Kenny from the corner of his eye as he answered, "I just felt like I had to get away from life. You know?" Kenny nodded his head.

They made small talk for a little bit before Kenny had to leave. He didn't like the idea of Karen staying at the house by herself for very long. With a polite farewell, Kenny left Craig Tucker sitting at the bench. While Craig sat there, wondering if he wasn't all alone in this world after all.


	3. Chapter 3

_**So I decided to make this a story with different points of views. It was actually a lot o fun writing from Craig's perspective! Hope you enjoy! And thank you all for the amazing comments, the follows and favorites to this story! It means so much to me. :)**_

**_Disclaimer - I do not own South Park._**

* * *

_**Craig Tucker**_

_Sociology is complete bullshit, _Craig thought to himself as Mr. Garrison stood in the front of the room and droned on and on. It was a wonder that Mr. Garrison wasn't dead yet. The man was almost completely bald and had gained a shit ton of weight as he got older.

A paper wad was thrown across the room as Mr. Garrison's back was turned, landing on Broflovski's desk. Craig turned his head slightly to see who had thrown it at Kyle. He wasn't surprised to see it was Stanly Marsh. He noticed Kyle unwad the paper and read what was on it. Kyle looked back up to a grinning Stan and gave a sharp nod as a huge smile crossed his face.

_What faggots, _Craig thought to himself as he went back to his worksheet, doodling a cartoon version of his dead guinea pig named Stripe. Craig had gotten a new one named Dot, but it just slept all day and was boring as fuck.

"Now class," Mr. Garrison spoke up, the tone of his voice catching Craig's attention, "I figured you children are grown up and mature enough to do this assignment. What I'm going to do is put you in pairs. Over the next three weeks, I want you and your partner to spend as much time with one another as possible. Like staying in the same household." Clyde Donovan was quick to shout out, "If we can stay at each other's house, can I have Bebe as my partner?" Laughter erupted in the classroom but was soon silenced by the sharp look of the teacher.

A groan of annoyance was suppressed by Craig. The boy absolutely hated partner work. It was either him doing all the work or his partner trying to help, but being a retard and not knowing what to do. That was one reason why he never worked with Clyde. After all, the dude was a complete dumb ass.

"After the three weeks together, I want you to write as much information down you possibly can about the other person. Not stuff you already know, but stuff no one knows. These papers will be read by me, and only me. I'm basing this experiment on trust with people your age. Now, I'll read the pairs," Mr. Garrison said as he grabbed a hat that was most likely filled with the kids' names.

Craig couldn't help the scowl that formed on his face, thinking about how his partner would be picked anonymously. It could be Eric fucking Cartman, and no one wanted him as a partner. "Clyde and Tweek," Mr. Garrison announced the first pair as he read the two pieces of paper.

Craig Tucker turned slightly in his chair to face his friends. Over the years they had both grown. Clyde wasn't as fat as he was in fourth grade, making him more cocky and a little full of himself. Tweek was getting a little better with his addiction to coffee. He was still extremely jumpy at times, though.

"Stan and Kyle," Mr. Garrison called, making the two fags smile at each other. Those two had changed a lot as well. Kyle's hair had thinned and was now just extremely wavy, you couldn't really tell though because of the green ushanka he wore on his head. Broflovski had also grown stronger from playing basketball constantly. Stan now had floppy looking emo hair that met his eyebrows, making them disappear when gave someone a skeptical look. He was constantly wearing his Varsity football jacket.

"Wendy and Eric," the teacher said with a slight smirk. Wendy was up from her seat in an instant, "I demand a redraw! I will _not_ be his partner!" Craig rolled his eyes at her little performance. Wendy was a total drama queen. Cartman sat in his seat with his arms crossed over his chest, "I agree with the bitch." Mr. Garrison's eyes flared with anger as he told them they had to or would fail the class. Craig couldn't help the snicker that escaped from his lips. Wendy turned and glared at the boy with the blue hat, making Craig raise an eyebrow with a bitter smirk printed on his face.

After that, Mr. Garrison continued on. "Token and Bebe." Bebe was the town slut next to McCormick. She had the double D tits and the huge ass. She always wore so much makeup, Craig couldn't remember what her face looked like without it. Craig was kind of embarrassed about liking her in Jr. High. Token Black was basically… well… a beef cake. That was the only way to describe him. Sports did wonders for that kid.

"Butters and Red." Butters was gay, literally. After McCormick got to him, Butters announced that he was homo and soon started going out with a kid in the sophomore class. Butters was small and thin, his blonde hair almost white. Red was still Red. Although, she got taller and put her aggression to use by joining the girls' basketball team.

There was a long pause before Mr. Garrison continued, "And lastly, Craig and Kenny." Craig's eyes narrowed in slits as McCormick turned towards him with a big grin, but it was covered by his hood. Along with almost everything else. His black eye was very prominent, swollen slightly. Craig sighed in relief as the bell rang, he was soon out of his seat and out the door.

_Thank fucking God it's lunch time,_ Craig thought as he grabbed his stuff and made his way to his locker. He would have to talk to Kenny about sleeping arrangements later. He shoved his books into his messy locker, slamming the door shut before making his way towards the lunch room.

Craig was in line to get his food before pulling out his phone to seen a quick text to his mom, telling her that he would be home late. Craig was planning on going to Taco Bell with Clyde after school, then to Clyde's house to play video games. His mom didn't text back until he was out of line and sitting at the lunch table. Of course, it was to tell him that she didn't care.

Everyone who usually sat at the table was present today, all but McCormick and Clyde who were a couple tables away. "So, Kenny threw a fit because you asked him what was wrong?" Butters asked, a slightly shocked expression on his face as he chewed on a French fry. Stan nodded, his black hair almost getting in his eyes until he blew it away. "We've never seen him this pissed before. It's like he's mad at us for his God damned parents beating him."

"Just give him some space," the words were out of Craig's mouth before he thought about it. Fuck. All eyes at the table were on him, making Craig feel self-conscious. "Since when do _you_ know how Kenny needs to be handled?" Kyle snapped, his green eyes bursting with frustration and a hint of hatred. Craig felt his eyes narrow, but he didn't reply as he took a sip of the Pepsi can on his tray. "Pussy," the quiet teen heard the fat boy mutter.

Craig's anger had gotten the better on him. His fists slammed against the table counter, towering over Cartman who sat right in front of him. The room grew a deadly quiet as all eyes in the lunch room turned to him. Tensions were rising in hopes of a fight. "I am not a pussy," Craig growled before turning sharply from the table, knocking his chair over to try and help relieve the anger as he left the room.

Craig Tucker walked towards the back doors near the restroom, pushing them open and using the brick outside to hold the doors open so it wouldn't lock. He breathed deeply through his nose as a way to calm down, the sent of crisp pine wafting through his nose. He hated it. Hated the anger he always had illuminating off of him. Mr. Tucker, Craig's father, was the same way. Always the one to snap at people. That's where Craig's short fuse had come from.

The teenage searched through his deep coat pockets, putting out the lighter and pack of cigarettes he constantly carried around with him. It was a nasty addiction he had picked up freshman year. It was sort of an escape, like drinking. Craig was one to do that as well. He would sneak down the stairs and into his parent's room to take a bottle or two of rum. Or vodka. Which ever one he preferred that night.

An escape was what it was. From life and home and everyone. The cigarette dangled from his lips as he lit it and took a deep drag. He felt calmer instantly. Although, it scared Craig terribly. He didn't want to become an addict but it seemed as if he could never stop himself.

_**If you're reading this, then you're most likely wondering why Craig is like that. Why would he want to escape his life when it's not as rough as Kenny's? Well, it isn't exactly happy either.**_

Craig kicked a pebble that laid motionless on the pavement. Sometimes he felt like he didn't belong anywhere. At his home, his parents ignored him. His sister rarely talked to him. That was one of the reason's why he almost went into a depression when his grandmother died. She was the only person who actually paid attention to his life _and cared._

Craig never really noticed his family was different until he started to notice how Clyde's dad and Token's parents treated their kids. They would walk in their homes after school and the first thing their parents would ask was always, 'how was your day?' Craig couldn't help but note that his parents said nothing as he walked in the door to his home from school. Not even a hello would come from their lips.

His sister would quickly escape to her room, flipping her parents off as she went off to her cave. Craig would peak in the living room to see his dad in his underwear watching football and his mother on the recliner reading a book.

After a while, he got used to it. Sometimes though, he wondered if life would be happier if his parents were different. Would they actually come watch him play sports, well that is if he actually played. Craig hated organized sports.

As the black haired and tall boy stood with his back against the wall, taking the occasional drag of his cigarette, footsteps were coming close towards the door. Craig prayed to a God he barely believed in, hoping it wasn't a teacher.

Relieve flooded through his body, although it was short lived when he seen who the mystery person was. Blonde hair was now visible. A white smile with a tiny gap in the two top front teeth showing. Oddly tanned skin with summer freckles that covered his kind of crooked nose.

"Mind if I bum a cigarette?" Kenny McCormick asked.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Kenny McCormick**_

During fifth period lunch, Kenny sat away from everyone he would usually sit with. Clyde Donovan had insisted that he sit with him because Kenny would "look like a loner." Kenny didn't mind though, he had company and as long as Clyde didn't bring up his black eye like Stan had earlier, then they would be okay. So far, Clyde wasn't being a pain in the ass.

"You know who has big boobs? Red. I wish Bebe and Red would just randomly start making out in front of me. That would be sweet." Now that Kenny thought of it, Clyde's nasally voice was a tad annoying. Kenny rolled his blue eyes as he took his hood down, "Bro, those two are the best and hottest cheerleaders in the school. And you're… you."

Kenny could feel eyes on him. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably as he looked around the room. It was either the fact that his hood was down after wearing it up constantly or that he wasn't with his best friends during lunch time. His eyes landed on those of a sophomore cheerleader. She looked Kenny over as she bit her lip, then winked at him with her long lashes. Kenny turned away with the corners of his lips turned down.

Clyde looked at Kenny as if he were stupid, "What? Dude, I could so get Red and Bebe in the same bed as me. I'm the Dono_man_!" He did a little fist bumping move before picking up his pizza and taking a chunk from it. Kenny snorted, "Yeah, I'd love to see it." Clyde narrowed his eyes, "Oh, and you think you can get whoever you please?" Kenny heard the challenging tone in Clyde's voice, and damn did he love a good challenge. "Hell yeah."

There was a sudden slam against a table. The brunette and blonde boys' heads snapped in the direction from where the noise came. Craig Tucker stood there with his fists against the table top, glaring at Cartman. His normally grey eyes looked black as he leaned forward and hissed something at Cartman. As Craig turned, he punched his chair in frustration, knocking it over as he stormed out of the cafeteria.

Kenny couldn't peal his eyes from the table. Stan stood up like he were going to do something, but Kyle's hand came to rest on his. Stan looked Kyle in the eyes before his face lost all hardness and he nodded once, then took his seat. Kenny wondered if Kyle knew what he did to Stan. After all, no one but Kyle can calm down Stan that quickly. Clyde was the one to tear him from his thoughts when his laughed boomed loudly in Kenny's ear, "I got it! Let's make a bet, McCormick." Kenny gave the boy a curious glance, urging him to continue.

"You think you can get anyone. I bet you couldn't get Craig Tucker to fall in love with you. He's never had his first kiss. Never had sex. If you can get _him_ to tell you that he loves you, and means it, and have passionate sex with him, then I'll give you a grand. Swear to God." Clyde raised a hand in the air as he said the last part. Kenny's stomach clenched. He didn't like this bet, but he didn't want to be a pussy. "And what happens if I lose?" Kenny's voice was nonchalant, but he didn't want the question answered. Clyde thought for a moment before grinning widely, his white teeth glistened. "You have to strip in the middle of this cafeteria. You have until the project in Mr. Garrison's room is due." Kenny was silent as he thought this over.

"Deal," he stuck his hand out and Clyde gripped it tightly as he gave a hardy shake. Kenny stood from the table. "Where are you going?" Clyde called out as Kenny made his way towards the door, "We still have twenty minutes of lunch left!" Kenny just waved a hand towards him. His friends stared at his back as he left the lunch room. _May as well start now._

He checked the restrooms, then walked the halls for about five minutes before coming to the cracked door that led outside to the back parking lot for teachers. Peaking out, Craig was frozen in anticipation. Kenny shoved the door and with a lazy grin, asked Craig if he could bum a smoke. Craig's mouth went slack but quickly snapped shut as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his blue coat pocket. As Craig's own cigarette dangled between his lips, he lit Kenny's and handed it to him. After taking a long drag, he finally said, "Didn't know you smoked, Tucker." Kenny was observant as he watched Craig's hazel eyes narrow as he shrugged his shoulders. Kenny never noticed how tall Craig was; about two or so inches taller than he was. His mouth was set in a narrow line, like he didn't like Kenny's presence.

"If you want, I can leave," Kenny suggested as he jerked a thumb towards the door. Craig's eyes went wide and in a flash they were narrow again. "No. You can stay if you don't mind being late to class." A devious smile grew on Kenny's tanned face, "We could just skip the last two classes. I don't want to go to chemistry or art." Craig didn't answer and Kenny wasn't sure if he should just say 'never mind' or wait for the response he may not get. "We're taking my truck," was Craig's answer. Kenny wanted to beam with joy.

_Maybe getting Craig to love me will be easier than I thought. Clyde's gonna be a thousand short,_ Kenny thought with a smug look as he climbed into the passenger side of Craig's navy blue truck. The pang of jealousy was back as he slid onto the seat of the tidy truck. "Where to, McCormick? Your idea, you pick the place," Craig said with a nasally tone as he flipped the key and brought the car to life.

Kenny thought for a moment before answering, "Up in North Park, they have a Dairy Queen. We can get ice cream." Craig's face had a skeptical look, "Ice cream in the winter? That's retarded. Why not get some fucking snow and put flavoring in it?" Kenny rolled his eyes as he looked out the window to watch the snow fall. He knew that Craig was watching him from the way his stomach was doing flips. _Okay… maybe this won't be as easy as I thought. _Craig sighed through his nose, then shifted the truck into drive and pulled out of the parking lot. "Where are we going?" Craig answered, "North Park."

The smallest hint of a smile formed on Kenny's face as he watched the little town of South Park blur by. It was a great day, a light snow fall with the sun shining brightly. A great night to play football.

After about five minutes on the road, a familiar ring tone blared from Kenny's pocket in his coat. _"Your pop caught you smoking, and he said, 'No way!' That hypocrite smokes at least two packs a day. Man, living at home is such a dra-" _Kenny cut the ring tone off as Craig sneered, "The Beastie Boys?" Kenny ignored the comment as he answered the phone.

"Da?" Kenny asked into the phone, which was soon answered by Kyle's voice. "Where the fuck are you?!" Kenny groaned softly to where Kyle wouldn't be able to hear him, "Kyle, I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself." He couldn't help the hint of sarcasm in his voice. It was pretty obvious that Craig was trying to ignore him, but there was a curious glint in his eyes as he stared at the road. "Kenny," Kyle growled, "you can't just ditch! We have a game tonight and if you fail chemistry then your off the damned team!"

Kenny was getting aggravated with this bullshit. After years of his friends not caring about Kenny's grades, they decide to care now? "You're not my mother, Kyle." "You're right, because your mother doesn't fucking care about you, Ken!" Kyle finally snapped.

_Ouch. _Craig stiffened at in the drivers seat, hearing every word in the conversation. "Ken-" Kyle tried to say. Kenny huffed, "No, Kyle. You don't have to tell me that. I already know it's true." Kyle tried again, "Kenny. Please, I didn't mean-" The phone was snapped shut in Kenny's hands, his grip turning his knuckles white.

The two boys were silent as Craig pulled into the parking lot of Dairy Queen. Once the ignition was off, they sat in silence for a moment. Kenny's mouth was dry as he replayed the conversation all over again in his head. Craig was the one to break the silence, "Listen, McCormick. Don't listen to them. They're a bunch of pricks." Kenny's teeth dug into his tongue so deeply, a metal taste overcame his mouth. Fuck. "Am I a prick, too?" Kenny asked in a hoarse whisper. He couldn't help but wonder how others viewed him. Craig was silent, opting not to answer. Kenny sighed as he opened the door and walked in without waiting on Craig.

The bell chimed overhead, announcing his presence. A middle-aged woman was the one to take his order. _Was this going to be me in the future? Working at fast-food places my entire life?_ The bell chimed again as Craig walked in and placed an order as well. _Vanilla cone? Really? Even his food choices were boring, _Kenny thought as he ordered a Brownie Earthquake with extra hot fudge.

After grabbing and paying for their ice cream, they went towards the back of the restaurant where only an elderly couple sat. An unsettling feeling crept into Kenny's gut, but he shrugged it off in hopes it would go away. Kenny chewed the brownie quietly as he scrolled through his phone. Kyle wouldn't quit texting him.

**Kyle - Dude plz answer my texts. I honestly didn't mean it. I'm so sorry.**

**Kyle - Kenny. Come on. Come back to the school so we can straighten this out before the game.**

**Kyle - I'll talk to you in a bit. Meet me soon so I can properly apologize.**

Kenny shut his phone off as a feeling of sickness waved through his body. Maybe coach will let him sit if he finds out he ditched school. No, coach wouldn't do that. Kenny McCormick was the only available running-back. The backup broke his leg in a wreck.

"You okay?" Craig's uneven voice asked as he licked the cone. Kenny's front teeth hit the ice cream, making him flinch a bit as his teeth stung numbly. Kenny's left eyebrow rose as he stared at the boy across from him. Craig's hat covered most of the hair on his head, but the ends came out towards the middle of his forehead. He had a strong jaw and high cheek bones, too. His face was an ivory color and clear of acne. Kenny thought he would be more attractive if he had a better personality. Craig always came off as cold and rude to people unless it was Tweek, Token, or Clyde.

Kenny spat, "Why? Do you care?" Craig's eyes naturally narrowed. "I don't. just making conversation since it was your idea to go here and be all depressed looking and boring." A hard laugh rumbled from Kenny's chest, "Boring? Says the person who chooses a vanilla cone at Dairy Queen when there are a shit ton of choices."

Craig cracked a smile. _An actual smile._ Only a hint of sarcasm was in it. "Ice cream? Are you fucking with me?" It was odd to think the cause of Kenny's grin was because of Craig Tucker. They smiled at each other for a bit before Craig quickly averted his eyes to the cone and started to eat the waffle part of it.

"How come you always wear your hood up?" Craig asked, taking Kenny aback. _I feel vulnerable to death without it,_ Kenny thought to himself before answering Craig's question. "Bed head." Craig scanned Kenny's hair with his eyes, the blonde hair sat almost perfectly ruffled on Kenny's head. A sigh escaped as he pulled out his Razor phone and checked the time. "We better go soon. I have a game tonight against Elton Valley." Craig finished off the cone and stood as he waited for Kenny to throw away his plastic bowl and spoon.

The drive back to the school was silent, but the comfortable kind. After getting permission to fiddle around with the radio to the truck, Kenny found a good station. _Riot_ by Three Days Grace was blaring through the speakers. Kenny knew all of the Three Days Grace song by heart. From the corners of his eyes, he could see Craig drumming his long fingers along with the beat of the music with a small grin on his face. As least he had decent taste in music.

Craig parked near the football field entrance, right beside his car he had parked earlier in the morning. Again, Craig's truck shamed Kenny's car. He got out of the passenger side and softly shut the door. The window was rolled down by Craig. "You comin' to the game tonight?" Kenny asked with a cheery grin. He unlocked the car and grabbed his bag from the back seat. He turned back to Craig, who sat in the seat with his nose scrunched in disgust. "No. I hate organized sports." Kenny let out a breathy chuckle, "Dude, that makes you sound like one of the goth kids." Craig shrugged as he gave Kenny a sharp nod of the head before pulling out. Kenny stared after with his bag on his shoulder.

_**Clyde Donovan**_

The team was getting dressed for the game when Kenny walked through the doors. Snow stuck in his blonde hair as he stared at the ground, passing by his friends as he went to the corner of the room with his bag slumped on his shoulder. Clyde couldn't help but notice the chilling glare sent to Kenny by Stan, Kyle, and Eric. Another thing Clyde noted was that Kenny had kept his hood down almost all day. Clyde may not have been top of the class, but he was plentiful observant.

He ignored the weird stares as he squeezed his way through a group of almost naked seniors and made it to Kenny. With a short glance towards the tall boy, Kenny pulled up his padded pants. "What's up?" Clyde leaned his bare back against the cold metal of a locker as he ignored Kenny's question, asking one of his own, "What's going on with you and them?" Kenny didn't have to look to know who he was talking about. He just simply shrugged his shoulders and slid on a long-sleeved and fitted shirt before adding shoulder pads and the green South Park Cows jersey that had the number **21** printed on the front and back and McCormick written on the top of his back. Clyde sighed through his nose before straightening up and clapping a hand on Kenny's padded shoulder, "Just talk to me if you need me, bro."

The brunette boy crossed the room to slid on his clothes. Before he was able to add the green jersey over his shoulder pads, a hand gripped his shoulder and flipped him around. Clyde faced Stan and Kyle with a hard expression. Their fat friend was talking to Tweek. Actually, he was picking on the jumpy blonde by taking his before-game coffee.

Clyde focused his dirt cold eyes on Stan's hand until it was off his shoulder. With a huff, Stan's hair that was in his eyes blew upward before falling back down again. Kyle just stood there analyzing Clyde. _God, what the fuck did I do now?_

Broflovski's ginger hair was more of a wave than a curl. His green eyes stared furiously into Clyde's. "What did he say to you?" Clyde gave him a dumb look, "Who?" An exasperated sigh escaped the day-walker's mouth, "Kenny." Kenny searched Kyle's eyes until he found what he was looking for. Protectiveness over the blonde boy. "Nothing."

At the exact moment Clyde thought Kyle were about to explode with anger, the coach walked in and went over the game plan. It gave Clyde a chance to get away. "Starting line up: McCormick is running-back. Marsh is quarterback. Donovan is lineman." Clyde tuned out the coach as soon as he learned his position. Instead, he looked around at his teammates. There were more juniors than any other grade. The freshmen looked scared and unsure. Of course, the reason being this was their first game of the season and first time playing high school ball. The seniors wore cocky grins, having done this for about four years now. Then there were the sophomores who were the least athletic group in the school. _They didn't stand a chance their senior year._

"You hear me, Donovan?" Coach Matthews shouted, making Clyde nod so hard his hair fluffed on his head. The coach gave a stiff nod back before telling the players to get their helmets on and warm up. Clyde did as told and as soon as the locker room doors opened wide, the die-hard Cows fans roared. Even though the game didn't start for thirty minutes.

As the boys ran out, adrenaline pumped through Clyde's body as he scanned the bleachers for his father, but instead landing on something strange. A blue dot in a sea of green. With narrowed eyes, he realized who it was. _Don't like organized sports, aye?_ Clyde thought as he looked at the blue blur. He glanced at Kenny, who hadn't noticed his important fan.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note : So sorry for not posting in a while. My life has been pretty crazy with finals nearing and having softball practice almost every day. And thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and follows! I honestly had doubts about this story at first. Some of the comments are seriously amazing! I can't believe that_I'm _inspiring people! Thank you guys so much! Now, on with the story! :3**

* * *

_**Craig Tucker**_

Craig wasn't positive about what was happening on the football field, but the score board told everyone that it was the third quarter of the game. The Cows were struggling to stay ahead with a close score of fourteen to seven. Poor McCormick was getting nailed out there by the bigger guys on the other team. Craig could have even swore he saw a boy from the other team kick him in the ribs while he was down.

Marsh threw a great pass to Kenny, but as soon as it was firmly in his gloved hands he was tackled to the ground. The head coach threw his playbook to the turf field and yelled at McCormick and the freshman that was supposed to be blocking for him. Kenny nodded his head solemnly and got back into the line.

Craig didn't know a lot about football, or any sport for that matter, but it wasn't Kenny's fault he kept getting tackled. Someone should be blocking for him. Yet, the coach kept blaming it all on McCormick which added a lot of pressure on him.

Craig huffed through his nose as he pulled his coat closer to his body. It felt like it was below zero out here. _This is so fucking dumb. Why the hell am I even here? _Craig had to admit that spending the day with McCormick was better than his original plans to hang out with Clyde.

The ball was tossed to Kenny again, making the people around him stand as they watched him catch the football and sprint to the end of the field. Craig couldn't help but smile as he watched. As soon as Kenny were close to the in-zone, a defensive player grabbed his jersey and brought him to the ground. The ball fell from his hands and a player from Elton Valley grabbed it and ran the opposite way before being tackled at the fifty yard line.

Fans of the Cows threw their hands up in frustration and boo'd Kenny McCormick. Craig stared at Kenny while he lay on the ground with his head in his hands. Broflovski rushed over to Kenny and helped him up. Craig knew Kenny was upset by the way he stood on quivering legs and shook his head back and forth.

Craig stood from his seat, deciding it was better to head home than freeze his ass off. As he walked down the stands, he watched the scene unfold. Kenny's helmet was jerked off his head and the coach yelled at him in front of everyone. McCormick's face went red in embarrassment and blood flowed heavily from his nose. Craig wondered what happened to him that made his nose bleed. With the shake of his head, Kenny pulled his arm away from his coach's grip and jogged towards the bleachers, disappearing underneath.

With an aggravated groan, Craig jogged the rest of the way down and slowed to a walk once he was underneath the bleachers. He crept under the shadows, stopping once Kenny and Kyle were in view and could easily be heard. In the cracks of the stands, artificial rays of light illuminated the two friends. Kenny repeatedly ran his fingers through his hair until it was sticking up. Craig ignored the weird sensation he got in his stomach.

"God, don't make me beg. Tell me what's wrong. I care, Stan cares." Kenny whipped off the blood on his upper lip with his sleeve before glistening tears streaked down Kenny's red cheeks. "Damn it, I'll tell you what's wrong! My parents don't love me, I can't find one fucking job to support my sister, I'm failing three of my classes, I'm never going to get that football scholarship, I get called shit like man-whore, and I constantly -" Kenny cut his list off short as he sucked in a deep breath. Craig wondered what else he was about to say, but it didn't look like Kenny was about to finish. The blonde's knees gave out and he silently sobbed into his hands.

Craig fought off the urge to comfort the crying boy, taking a step away instead. "I'm weak. I'll never be strong enough to stand up to them." Kyle slowly got down on his knees so he could be face-to-face with his friend. "Kenny, you're the strongest person I know. Remember in middle school how you would go almost days without eating just so you could give the food to Karen? I always have and always will wish to be as strong as you are." Kenny rubbed away the tears and looked up at Kyle, his blue eyes were rimmed red. "I never told you why my dad hates me."

Kyle's silence made Kenny continue. With a shudder, Kenny said, "He doesn't think I'm his son. My fucking dad told me that he could never love me because I'm different than the rest of the family." Kyle was silent as he took it all in. Craig stared at Kenny, a weird feeling was in his chest. Pity? A hiccup escaped Kenny before he said, "I'm sorry, dude. I know you guys care. It just feels like…" Kenny trailed off as Kyle shook his head. "Friends forever, dude." Their arms wrapped around each other and held on as if their lives depended on it.

Craig couldn't help but wonder what was better, to be hated by your parents or ignored. They both seemed pretty terrible. The boy in the shadows felt guilt creep into his gut as he realized how bad it was that he was listening to someone's private conversation. Finally, he turned away and made his way to the back parking lot to look for his car. The frown on his face never wavered.

* * *

_**Kenny McCormick**_

_Weak was a word to describe me tonight,_ Kenny thought as he pulled out of the school parking lot. He left the game after the third quarter finished, vowing to return with his head held high. His windows were rolled down as icy wind hit his face, driving to the "getto" part of South Park.

With his stomach doing flips, Kenny fiddled with the radio. He knew what was coming; he just didn't know when. It was as if on cue, bright lights barreled towards the teenager. His eyes squinted as he looked towards the edge of the road, in hopes of not being blinded. It didn't help though.

A large truck ran head-on into Kenny's car. The boy's seat belt snapped and his body was hurled out the windshield. Bones were crushed as he broke through the thick glass. Fire shot through his form has his head smacked against the black pavement of the road. Tremors rumbled through his body, making him curl into a ball. Kenny wanted a fast death to get over the pain.

He squeezed his eyes tightly as his muscles tensed, causing sharp pain all down his body. A low groan escaped his throat as tears threatened to spill. Kenny wondered if this night could get any worse, though it didn't seem possible. His breath became shallow and the pain started to dull. His head rocked back and forth as his muscles relaxed. Blood seemed to pool around his body. _Is that mine?_ Kenny asked himself as his mind began to fog. He blinked his eyes a couple times to get rid of the blurriness. It didn't work though. His heart rate was at a dangerously slow pace.

By the time the ambulance had gotten there, it was too late. Kenny McCormick was motionless on the road with his eyes drawn shut. As the body was placed into a body-bag, Kenny's soul was elsewhere.

"Ah, Kenneth McCormick. Welcome, my child," a familiar voice called. Kenny's eyes snapped open to see God sitting on His throne. "Hello, God." God was a short-legged squirrel, elephant, cat, hippo hybrid thing. He told Kenny before that only humans saw Him as that. After Kenny had tried to talk God into showing His true form, He refused due to Kenny would be back on Earth.

With His deep and calming voice, God asked, "What is troubling you?" With a sigh, Kenny asked, "Why do I die, then come back to Earth? I don't understand why I can't just stay dead. God's eyes studied Kenny before He finally spoke, "You must figure that out on your own. It will come in time, my son." Kenny's body vibrated as the wings fell from his shoulder blades and the halo dissolved. Kenny stared at God before his body had disappeared.

* * *

Kenny's eyes flew open as he awoke in his bed. He flung the blue covers off of his body and leaned up. He rubbed his shoulder as he felt warmth: life. With his hands pressed against the mattress for support, his eyes wandered to the clock. The corners of his mouth lifted as the clock read 6:30 in the morning. He wouldn't be late for school.

Kenny rose from his bed before straightening the covers and pillows. His bare feet tiptoed across the bedroom floor in case his parents were home. He entered Karen's room and shook her slumbering body, "Kare. It's time to get up." The thirteen-year-old sighed, "Can't I just stay home today? You do it sometimes." Kenny frowned, "I'm not going to have you miss unless you're sick. Come on or we'll be late." Karen groaned but obediently climbed out from under her blankets.

Once Kenny was back in his room, he couldn't help but stare at his reflection in the cracked full-length mirror. Dark circles were painted under his eyes. His rough hands touched his stomach to find tat the ribs that once poked out were hidden. That was one perk of dying and coming back; your body would replenish certain areas. He turned from his haunted reflection and looked through his closet. After deciding on trying something new, he threw on a plain white T-shirt and threw a black sweatshirt over it. He slid on a pair of blue jeans and black tennis shoes that weren't too ratty looking. After looking back at the mirror, he tossed his hair around a bit before declaring he looked decent.

As soon as he was in the hall, Karen was rushing around looking for her backpack. Kenny couldn't help but roll his eyes when he noticed it at the end of her bed. "Karen." She turned towards her older brother with wide brown eyes, "What?" Kenny pointed towards the pink bag before leaving her room and heading towards the kitchen.

Kenny grinned when he couldn't find his parents, then grabbed two slices of bread and shoved them in the toaster. As he waited for them to finish, he grabbed some butter and strawberry jelly. When Karen walked in the kitchen, the toaster popped out the warm toast and Kenny quickly spread the butter and jelly on both. He handed them to Karen, who gave her brother a suspicious look. "Did you eat?" Kenny put on his best smile as he easily fibbed, "Of course, while you were getting ready." Karen nodded as she started on her breakfast. Kenny went to the bathroom his family had to share to brush his teeth and put on deodorant.

Once Karen was done, they left the house and climbed into Kenny's car. As Kenny drove, Karen flipped from station to station until finding her favorite pop station. Kenny couldn't help the shudder that crept up his back. It was kind of funny how the car seemed to come back to life as well. "You look good today," Karen said as she looked over Kenny's clothing, "it's good to change it up every now and then." Kenny let out a light laugh.

"Listen, Kare. For the next couple weeks I might have to stay at Craig Tucker's house for a project. It'll only last three weeks but I don't want you home alone with Mom and Dad. Do you think you can find someone who will let you stay with them?" Karen nodded, "Yeah, Ruby told me about it already and I already asked Kelly Robinson."

Kenny nodded as he pulled into the parking lot of the Jr. High. "Bye, Karen," Kenny called as he watched her get out. She waved before going into the building. The car sputtered before leaving the lot. Kenny couldn't help but want to skip school himself. He pulled into his parking place at the high school and grabbed his bag from the back seat before getting out of the car.

A cold wind picked up, making Kenny rush inside. South Park weather was so bipolar. As he walked through the front doors, people turned and stared. Everyone was so used to him always wearing the orange coat. Kenny's eyes trailed towards the floor while walking to his locker. When he got there, Stan was at his. If it weren't for having their lockers in alphabetical order then they wouldn't be close. "Hey, Ken."

"Sup, bro?" Kenny asked as he twisted in his combination. The locker door flew open and a couple papers fell from the top shelf. Kenny sighed as he bent down to grab them. As he was doing so, a hand slid across his ass. Kenny jerked up and his head against the locker door. He flinched, but turned to see Bebe facing him and walking away. She gave him a "call me" sign before turning. Kenny rubbed the top of his head and shoved the papers in his locker.

"Looks like Bebe is back on the prowl," Stan joked as he tossed around his hair before placing his hat back on his head. The ends of his hair almost in his eyes. Kenny scowled as he grabbed his notebook and a pencil. Wendy Testaburger suddenly appeared behind Stan, her arms reaching around Stan's waist and giving a light squeeze. "Hi, Stan," she purred. "Hey, Wendy," Stan said as he lightly took her hands off of him. "Are you coming over after practice?" Stan turned to face her and nodded, making Wendy peck his cheek and give a wave goodbye as she left for class.

Kenny ignored the fact that Wendy hadn't acknowledged him, not really caring as he gave Stan a questioning look. "Does Kyle know you're back with Wendy?" Stan shook his head, "I want to tell him… but I can't." Kenny frowned, "Why not? He's your best friend." Stan just shook his head as he said, "Reasons. See you around, Kenny."

Kenny watched Stan walk away before turning back to his locker and shoving his back pack inside. As he was pulling out his History book, he overheard a conversation. "And _that's_ Kenny McCormick. The town slut." It was followed by the sound of girls laughing. Kenny's face grew warm in embarrassment. As he sighed, he slammed his locker shut before stalking off to first period.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Kenny McCormick**_

_Sweet, sweet freedom, _Kenny thought as he stepped out of the school building and made his way across the parking lot. Today was the day Kenny and Craig had to start their project. For three long weeks, Kenny would be staying at the Tucker household. Around lunch, Coach Anderson had made the announcement that practice would be cancelled the next couple of days and the upcoming game was rescheduled. Apparently a blizzard was heading in the direction of South Park. So Kenny had nothing to do until he had to go to Craig's. All his clothes and other stuff he would need were already in the trunk of his car. As he sauntered towards his car, he paused as he noticed Craig surrounded by Tweek, Clyde and Token.

Kenny couldn't stop the smile as he walked towards them. "Hey, guys," Kenny said as he gave them a polite smile. Tweek yelped at Kenny's sudden approach from behind while Token gave him a nod of acknowledgment. Clyde grinned widely and stuck his fist out, "Sup, bro?" Kenny's fist nudged causally against Clyde's. Craig's eyes were pointed towards the ground, refusing to meet the blue eyes that watched him. "When you want me over, Craig?" Kenny asked with hopes that he would look at him. He shrugged his shoulders in a careless manner, "I don't know. I'll text you when I get home." Kenny couldn't help but be nosey as he asked, "Where you going?" Token gave him a shy smile, "My house. If you want, you can tag along."

As Kenny was about to answer, he noticed the death glare Craig was sending his black friend. He frowned, wrinkles forming in his forehead as he said, "Nah, thanks but I'm supposed to go to Kyle's for a bit. See you guys around." Kenny gave a small wave before turning and walking to his car. He wasn't lying when he said he was going to Kyle's. Last night before Kenny left the school, Kyle had told Kenny he could come to his house whenever he wanted. So Kenny made the quick decision to go to his friend's house. The blonde climbed into his car, grinning when it didn't make a sound of protest as he turned on the ignition.

Kenny was quick to pull out of the parking lot and onto the road, pressing the gas pedal to gain speed. It didn't take long to get to any of his friends' houses. They all lived at least five minutes from the schools. Kenny lived about ten to fifteen. It all depended on how fast you drove. Kenny frowned as he screwed around with the radio a bit, grinning when a Linkin Park song came on. It was obviously one of the newer songs since he had never heard it before until now.

The car was pulled into the driveway, parked right behind Kyle's silver Chevy Avalanche. He slammed his car door and walked up to the front door, tapping his knuckles softly against the wooden door. Shelia Brofloski was the one to answer, "Oh, hello, Kenny. Come in." He grinned politely and slipped off his shoes, leaving them by the door. "Kyle is in his room upstairs. Would you like to stay for dinner? We're having goulash tonight," Mrs. Brofloski smiled. Kenny nodded, thanking her. Shelia wasn't that big of a bitch. Only when she wanted to be.

The blonde trudged up the stairs, passing Kyle's Canadian brother on the way up. "Hey, Kenny," Ike muttered as his eyes focused on his phone. Kenny said his hello before he came to the last door on the left, opening it wide without knocking to find Kyle's face pressed into a book. His eyes snapped up from the task at hand, momentarily setting his pencil aside and grinning at the guest. "Hey, Kenny. What's up?" the day-walker asked. Kenny flopped down on Kyle's neatly made bed as he grinned, "Just thought I'd hang out for a bit. We don't have much time to do that lately." Kyle nodded, sliding his papers into his book and shutting it. He stood up from his desk chair, stretching his back a bit before roaming over to the blonde watching his every move.

"Alright. Well, if you want we can play a videogame to pass time. Did Mom ask you to stay for dinner?" Kyle asked with a raised eyebrow. Kenny nodded, making his friend grin. Kyle slid off his green ushanka and messing with his hair a bit. It was extremely wavy, making it look a tad bit like the red curls that use to dominate his head. "Well, you can go ahead and pick it out." Kenny glanced at the pile of games as he chewed on the bottom of his lip. "Eh, you know I don't play much. Just pick out a good one. I'm fine with whatever." Kyle's head bobbed up and down as he got on his knees to search through the games.

Kenny stood up and walked towards Kyle's shelves that covered a bit of the wall. He looked at the basketball that was signed by some NBA player; it was in a glass case for protection. He moved on to the small picture frame, picking it up and observing it. It was from the fourth grade after their little league team had won a baseball game. Kenny smiled as he looked at their younger selves. Kenny's baseball cap was sideways, showing the frown that was on his face. Noticing how the others were frowning as well. No one really liked baseball at that point; they only played so the parents would be happy. Cartman's chubby self wore his hat backwards with catchers equipment still on. Kyle's fluffy hair popped out from under his cap and Stan looked like he was pissed about something. Probably the fact we had to continue on with baseball.

Kenny snorted, "Dude, we all look so upset in this picture." Kyle looked up from the game he had in his hands, glancing at the picture Kenny held. He grinned, "Yeah, I kinda thought it was funny. I found it in a stack of old pictures my mom had and decided to keep it in here and frame it." Kenny placed it back in it's original place. Kyle hooked up the game station and set everything up. He tossed Kenny the player two controller. They both sat at the edge of the bed as the starting screen came up.

"So, guess what I heard today?" Kyle murmured as he pressed start. "What?" Kenny asked as he looked over the buttons. Kyle was quiet, making Kenny sigh and pause the game. He then turned his attention to one of his best friends, "What's wrong, dude?" Kyle licked his lips before he answered, "I heard Stan is going back out with Wendy. He didn't even tell me. I guess they've been an item for almost a week. He never brought it up with me!" Kenny's lips turned down, "And how do you feel about that?"

Kyle looked utterly shocked at the question, unable to answer for a moment. Finally, he said, "I don't know… Hurt, betrayed. Jealous…" Kenny silence urged Kyle to continue on. "I just… I figured that I would be the first person he would tell. I'm his best friend." Kenny could do nothing but watch as tears started to pool in Kyle's eyes, "Kenny… I need to tell you something. I really have to get this off my chest." The blonde boy placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, getting a grateful smile in return. Kyle exhaled before continuing, "Ever since last year, I've been having such strong feelings for Stan. Like, I ignored it at first. But now… I can't do it any longer. They're too strong. I haven't looked at a girl like I do Stan in a while. God, Kenny. I can't even tell my parents. Or anyone for the matter. You're the first person I've told."

Kenny pondered all what his friend had confessed to him. After a long moment of silence, he finally said, "If you want to hear my opinion, I think you should tell your parents. They'll accept you the way you are because you're their child. They'll always love you and be proud of you. And with Stan, tell him how you feel. Hell, I bet everything under my name that he'll feel the same way. And everyone else? Fuck them. The only person you need to accept who you are is you. I'll always have your back, Kyle. And you can always come to me when you need someone to vent to."

Kyle's green eyes glistened with fresh tears before he quickly wiped them away with the back of his hand. "Thanks, Kenny. Dude, you should be a psychologist. You didn't interrupt and actually listened." It was Kenny's turn to be startled. He never really thought of the future farther than the next day. Kenny's smile widened, but before he could say anything, Mr. Brofloski called for them to come to dinner.

* * *

It was after dinner when Kenny got the text from Craig. He was upstairs with Kyle, finally getting around to playing the game when the phone in his back pocket buzzed. It made him jump a bit, but he quickly fished it out of his pocket. Once he opened the text, his eyes skimmed the words.

**Craig : You can come over whenever you want. Just make sure to take your shoes off at the door.**

Kenny frowned, checking the time. "Dude, I better go. I have to get to Craig's." Kyle leaned up from the bed and paused the game, "It's cool, Ken. Stan is supposed to come over soon anyway. I should probably talk to him soon." Kenny was walked to the door by Kyle, who kept rambling on about how nerve wrecking it was to build up the courage to talk to his best friend. Kenny wished him luck, grinning as he said goodbye.

His car squealed and shut off, but after another try it kicked to life. Kenny backed out carefully and once he was on the road, turned left and headed for Tucker's street. Dusk was nearing so Kenny flipped on his headlights to illuminate the road for him to see. Finding Craig's house wasn't hard. It was a place Kenny had been to a few times. He parked his car next to Craig's truck, flipping the ignition off and slinging the door open after grabbing the few bags he brought along.

Wind was starting to pick up, making the snow come down hard as Kenny rushed for the door. He stood there, wondering if he should knock or… Craig opened the door widely, his face in that constant frown. "Come on, McCormick." Kenny followed in closely behind, taking his shoes off like Craig had instructed earlier. The Tucker family owned a nice house. The front room held a lovly chandelier and had framed photos along the wall. One held a young Craig that just so happened to be flipping the camera off. Another was a family portrait and the one next to that help his little sister. Kenny turned away from the pictures to find Craig staring at him with a raised eyebrow. "Well, you coming?"

Kenny followed Craig up the stairs, holding on to the railing and taking in everything. Craig walked him down the hall and to the third door on the right. Once he opened it, Kenny placed his bags near the door. An air mattress was set up next to Craig's bed. Craig's room was kind of plain. His walls were painted a dark blue; no posters or pictures covered his walls. There was a closet and a drawer. A bedside table held a small black lamp along with a small cage holding what looked to be a guinea pig. Kenny walked closer to it, looking and the polka dotted thing as it ran in it's little wheel. "It's no Stripe, but he's an okay guinea pig." "What's it's name?" Kenny asked as he tapped on the wired cage. "Dot." Kenny snorted at the name, "Poor thing. It's owner can't come up with a good name."

"Go fuck yourself, McCormick," Craig said with heavy sarcasm as he walked to the desk set up in front of the window. He opened the laptop and waited as it started up. "Why would I do that to myself when I could have you do it for me?" Kenny smirked in a joking manner. He could basically hear the eye roll in Craig's tone as he said, "Wow, you really are a whore."

Kenny felt his shoulders slump, feeling as if he had just been sucker-punched. He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbed a bit at the action. His eyes were narrowed at the ground, feeling Craig's eyes on him. Kenny sighed a bit before licking his lips. When he finally looked up, his eyes met shining gray eyes that looked at him with slight interest. Craig chewed on the inside of his cheek as he stared at the poor boy. Finally, he broke the dead air as he asked Kenny if he was okay. Kenny snorted at the question, hearing it directed to him so many times. "Perfectly fine. Always am. I'm gonna get ready for bed." Kenny turned and left the room after grabbing his clothes. Going to the bathroom across the hall. And Craig sat there, feeling regretful at what he had said.

**Author's Note : Hey guys! Sorry it's been a while. Reality is kicking my ass at the moment. Ha. Anyway, I kinda wanna know more about my readers. So, I was thinking about having a question you can answer in the reviews. I just wanna get to know everyone. : ) Should I do it? I'll also reply to a few of them!**


	7. Chapter 7

_****_**I wanted to reply to some of my favorite comments so far. I'm kinda awkward to talk to over the Internet so sorry in advance! Haha!**

** kai-kakashi : Yes, Craig and Clyde are pretty close friends. And I love how Kenny doesn't even realize his feelings for Craig yet! And I agree, Adam Gontier not being the lead singer anymore just doesn't feel the same. :( Thanks for your amazing comments! I wish I would have thought of replying to you sooner! Hope you continue on enjoying the story! :)**

** timeisTicking (Naomi) : Their character development is so hard for me! Haha! But thanks for reassuring me that the development is okay! I have so many different types of music that I like. From The Fray to Linkin Park to bands and artists not very well known! Thank you for the lovely comment! ****Hope you continue on enjoying the story! :)**

_****_**Thank you to all the others who have reviewed as well! Short chapter ahead. Around 1,500 words.**

* * *

_**Craig Tucker**_

_Fuck. Why the hell did I say that to him? He made it pretty clear when he told Brofloski about people calling him a whore that it drove him insane. Damn it. _Craig had never felt as guilty in his life until that moment. He sat at his computer chair, patiently waiting for the blonde to return. _Maybe I should… apologize. _Hazel eyes narrowed at the thought. It would freeze over in Hell if Craig Tucker actually said sorry and meant it. He always figured if he did something wrong to someone that they would forget about it or grow a set of balls and suck it up. It was rare to think about other peoples' feelings. Shit, he didn't even think of his own half the time.

McCormick walked into the room with a expression. He wore a simple white t-shirt with his black boxers. Craig watched as a silent battle raged on inside his head. Stubbornness versus conscience. His mouth opened, as if searching for the right words. He inhaled deeply thorough his nose before taking a wild stab in the dark. "Kenny?" He ignored Craig, making himself comfortable on the blow-up mattress. McCormick ignoring him only made Craig feel pissed off, but he contained the anger as he tried one last time. "Kenny…"

Either the tone of Craig's voice or that Craig was annoying him caused Kenny to finally turn and meet Craig's eyes. He stared blankly, causing Craig to divert his eyes elsewhere in the room. "Listen, what I said was uncalled for. I don't know you well enough to actually say that. And, uh, well…" Craig chewed on the inside of his cheek as his hand ruffled through his hair.

A chuckle from the other side of the room caused Craig to face the less wealthy boy, staring at him under his dark bangs. His pale blue eyes shone with amusement. "Is Craig Tucker trying to say sorry?" Kenny teased, a hand reaching up to grasp the left side of his chest, right above his heart. "I'm touched." His hand fell and he gave Craig a kind smile, "I accept your apology, Craig."

The corners of Craig's lips raised a bit, but soon feel back into the neutral expression he constantly wore. He stood from the leather chair, raising his hands high as he stretched. He walked over towards his drawers, shifting clothing around until he came across a pair of blue plaid pajama bottoms. He tugged off his chullo hat, tossing it onto his desk before shaking out his hair.

Craig couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with Kenny in the room as he changed. Modesty wasn't his thing. Ignoring the flips his stomach did, he tugged off his hoodie and slid his legs out one by one before changing into the pants. He slid a black t-shirt over his head, feeling more relaxed once he was fully dressed. Craig tried to stiffly a yawn as he walked towards his bed, but failed terribly as an awkward sound came from his throat.

He slipped under his blanket. Craig never really liked sheets; they made him feel weird when they tangled around his body at night. Craig reached over, flipping off the bedside lamp.

"That tattoo," Kenny's voice had a bit o a curious tone to it, "does it symbolize anything?" It was invisible in the darkness, but heat rose towards Craig's cheeks at the thought of McCormick watching him get changed. "Not really," Craig's voice cracked a bit. He cleared his throat before continuing, "I was born October 23rd, so my zodiac sign is a Scorpio. I guess I'm not creative enough to get a tattoo that actually means something to me."

For a moment, it was so silent that you could actually hear the sound of Dot sniffing around in her cage. Finally, Kenny spoke again, "Can you tell me something about yourself?" Craig cocked his jaw a bit to the right, "What do you want to know?" He could hear the soft smile in Kenny's voice, he didn't have to see it to know it was there. "Anything. What's your favorite childhood memory?"

_Favorite childhood memory? _Craig felt stumped. Honestly, his childhood was a bit dull but there was many wild moments. "This may sound strange, but when we all bought weapons in the forth grade. I only had my friends buy them with me because I was jealous you had them. But damn, seeing Cartman get in trouble for nudity was fucking amazing."

Kenny laughed at the memory, "Dude, I was so positive I would have gotten in trouble for throwing that ninja star in Butters' eye. That was such a shock when Eric was the one to get screwed over."

Craig grinned in the darkness, "What's your favorite childhood memory?" Craig hears a hum from below his bed as Kenny thinks about his answer. "That's tough. Well, probably being Mysterion when a bunch of us were superheroes."

Craig slid an arm behind his head, staring blankly at the roof as he thought of some of his favorite memories. "Man, we had a rough childhood."

"No doubt about that," Kenny replied. The sound of Kenny moving around on the mattress was heard before a soft 'goodnight' came from below. "Night," Craig responded, unable to fall asleep.

_Yah know, McCormick isn't that bad of a guy. _Craig just lay there, eyes drifting closed as the wind from the storm died down.

* * *

_Who the fuck decided we had to go to school when there's almost a foot of snow on the ground? _Craig thought tiredly as he fought to keep himself awake in Chemistry. His eyes started to drift but snapped open when his name was called upon. "Craig Tucker?" Mrs. Myers snapped angrily. "Huh?" Craig sat up, leaning his head against his hand. "I asked you what Graham's law is."

Craig's tongue skimmed across his teeth as he tried to think of an answer, "Uh, isn't it a gas law that relates the rate of diffusion or effusion of a gas to it's molar mass?" Mrs. Myers grimaced, "That's correct. I would still appreciate it if you wouldn't fall asleep in my class, though."

From the corner of his eyes, he could see Token chuckle. Craig rolled his eyes and groaned. Mrs. Myers was the absolute worst teacher in South Park High. She was like Satan's spawn. "Did you just roll your eyes at me?" she hissed. _Let's just get outta here. _Craig raised his middle finger to the old hag, causing her to gasp and send him to the guidance councilor for his bad attitude. His face was expressionless as he grabbed his bag and made his way to the guidance office.

It was the same as always. He listened to Mr. Mackey ramble on and on about how he hadn't changed since elementary. If he heard that man say 'M'kay?' once more he may just snap and go insane.

During lunch, his group of friends sat away from their usual table. Clyde wouldn't stop smacking his lips as he chewed his food, making Craig flinch. It was one of his pet peeves when people ate like that. Although, no matter how much Token scolded Clyde the brunette never stopped eating that way.

"Did you hear about BeBe and I getting back together?" Clyde asked as soon as Craig had sat down after getting an apple from the kitchen. Craig shook his head, biting into the apple. Clyde nodded in what seemed to be a proud manner, "She wants me to come over tonight while her parents are out of town, if you catch my drift," Clyde wiggled his eyebrows.

Token shook his head, "Dude, you know things won't go well. Remember last time you guys were together?"

With BeBe always getting around with other guys and Clyde being a total dumbass like he is, the two as a couple is always disastrous. They're an on-and-off couple, almost as bad a Marsh and Wendy

Craig skimmed the lunch room, eyes landing on a boy with oddly tanned skin. Kenny laughed at something that was said by his fat ass friend. As much as Craig didn't want to admit, Kenny was quite attractive. He looked like some guy you would see at the beach. _How could someone even be that tan while living in South Park? _

"Earth to Craig!" Clyde's voice rung in his ear, making the stoic boy growl. "What the fuck, man?" Craig hissed, glaring at one of his best friends. Clyde had an eyebrow raised as he stared the boy over, "Were you staring at McCormick?" Craig's face started to heat up from embarrassment. "What? No." Clyde's grin widened, "Liar!"

Just then, the bell rang to dismiss the students to their next class. "No, I'm not. See you guys later," Craig forced the words out before sauntering off to his next class. "Try not to get caught daydreaming about him naked!" Clyde called, only to get the reply of a middle finger.


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for not updating recently! Remind me never to make a story up as I go. I tend to run into a lot of writers block... And discovering Free! Iwatobi Swim Club was also quite a distraction.. But totally worth it! I also forgot to describe Craig's tattoo. It's like just a simple Scorpio symbol. If you're not sure what it looks like then you can always look it up!**

**lovekyman: I'm the same way! Lol I always catch up before reviewing. And thank you so much for the lovely compliments! *Sends virtual hug.***

**horizon: I can see all the boys in South Park attractive as teenagers. Especially Kenny and Craig. ;)**

**g-peachy-chan: I _love _when Craig shows emotions to Kenny that he normally wouldn't show to anyone else! Omg I ship Crenny so hard. Haha!**

**Thanks for the reviews! They seriously make my day when I see a new one. :)**

* * *

_**Kenny McCormick**_

"Hey, Kinny. Wanna stay and play some basketball? Stan, Jew-Boy, Clyde and Token are willing," Cartman asked as they changed back into their casual clothes after a rough practice. Sweat dripped through his long locks as he slid his orange parka over a plain t-shirt. "How late you plan on playing?"

Cartman huffed at the question, as if it were obvious to Kenny. "As long as we can. Living with Wendy is worse than Hell itself." Kenny rolled his eyes at the saying, sitting down to tie the strings on his shoes. "Cartman, you know Hell is way worse."

It sucked knowing that Eric Cartman was the only one on this planet that knew about Kenny always dying and coming back, but it was a relief as well. At least one person knew he wasn't out of his mind. Although, Cartman was a douche and never backed Kenny up while the blonde was practically screeching at his friends while trying to explain why he was always away for long periods of time.

"Whatever," the chubbier boy rolled his eyes, "You in or not?" Kenny chewed on the inside of his cheek as he leaned up from his shoes, "I'll have to call Craig or something so he'll-" His sentence was cut short as a deep laugh bellowed throughout the locker room. Teammates turned and glared at the two as Cartman laughed and Kenny's face grew heated in embarrassment.

"Craig isn't your mommy, Kin. He doesn't need to know your every move." He shrugged his shoulders in what seemed to be a casual manner, but Cartman thrived on the embarrassment of others. "Is he your new lover? Heaven forbid your boyfriend gets upset that you don't inform him of your every move."

"Knock it off, Cartman. He's not my _boyfriend_," Kenny hissed, eyes narrowing a bit as he rose from the bench placed against the lockers. "Now, we gonna play or not?"

Cartman grinned, knowing he was triumphant in this little wager. "Yeah, I'll get them while you finish up." Cartman left momentarily, letting Kenny greet this silence warmly.

After they had all finished up in the locker room, the boys made their way towards the outside basketball courts with backpacks and football bags in arms. Kenny shivered as a cold gust of wind ruffled through his hair, only a reminder that winter was getting nearer. He tugged the hood of his parka up, pulling the strings to where most of his face was covered from the bitter wind. It seemed like it was always winter in this mountain town, besides the few months of summer.

Kenny silently lagged behind his companions as they lead the way towards the courts. He could hear them chatting about subjects that didn't interest him, like the fact that Clyde and Bebe were back together. Or that Mr. Mackey had been caught smoking pot but wasn't going to get fired for it. Okay, that last one was a bit interesting but he simply listened.

It was easy to guess that Kyle had told Stan about how he felt. He noticed the short stolen glances they would share, or the way Stan suddenly looked Kyle over. Kenny felt proud that Kyle had finally admitted his feelings for Stan, and damn was he glad that he was a bit right on how Stan would like Kyle back.

When choosing teams, Kenny found himself with Kyle and Token. Then the lean boy was soon guarding a much bigger Clyde for most of the game. The brunette would ask questions about how the bet was coming along.

"How's it going with Craig?" Clyde had asked while everyone else was distracted with Kyle and Cartman's endless bickering. This time it was about if Eric had fouled or not.

Kenny refused to meet Clyde's gaze as he stared off at the trees covered in snow that seemed to scatter themselves around the basketball courts. His shoulders raised in a nonchalant way, "I guess it's coming along fine. We talk a bit more than we did at first."

Clyde snorted, "Man, are you even _trying_? Okay, listen. As much as I'm lovin' the idea of you being embarrassed from stripping in front of most of the school, I'm gonna help out a bit."

Kenny's slightly dark eyebrows furrowed as he looked the taller boy over in confusion, "What do you mean?"

Clyde rolled his eyes as if Kenny was completely clueless, which he was. "Bebe is having a _huge_ party this Friday night. Booze and a lot of other things that are illegal for under aged teens. Invite Craig to come along with you. He's a bit of a drinker."

His lips pouted at the new information. Kenny's tongue skimmed over his canine before giving Clyde a wide grin, "Sounds like a plan. Thanks, bro."

Kenny's attention was brought back to the argument that was almost finished. Token huffed in anger as he threw a hand up, "Guys, are we playing or not? I could be catching up on homework right about now instead of watching you two morons fight."

Before anyone could say more, a familiar blue truck pulled into the parking lot and headed straight for the paused basketball game. Blue eyes watched in wonder as Craig parked and stepped out of the truck. _What's he doing here?_

"Sup, man?" Clyde greeted but was promptly ignored as Craig slowly made his way towards the group of teenage boys. Kenny watched as a faint sneer crossed his face as he noticed Stan and Cartman. The harsh facial expression only softened once his hazel eyes zoomed in on the blonde idling near the base of the basketball hoop.

"I came to see if you needed a ride home," Craig directed towards Kenny. His hands were shoved deeply into the jeans of his pockets, the blue chullo tugged tightly on his head as ebony bangs almost reached his eyebrows. His hair was almost like Stan's, but Craig would never agree to anything about him being similar to Marsh. "You know, considering you car broke down this morning."

Kenneth McCormick had officially pronounced his rolling piece of shit dead this morning. Craig had drove him to school but hadn't even thought that he would be back to get him after practice. He felt caught off-guard at the offer. "Uh, sure."

Kenny grabbed his football bag and backpack, slinging both over each shoulder. "I have to go. See you guys later."

He had heard many grumbles about having to quite the game due to uneven teams. And heard Cartman mumble about Kenny having to leave to 'satisfy his boyfriend.' Kenny simply ignored it as he walked towards Craig's car and hopped into the passenger side. Once the engine was running and warm air seeped through the truck did Kenny slide off his hood.

"Thanks. I need to junk that car soon and get a job after football season so I can get a better car."

Craig simply grunted in acknowledgement as he stared at the road ahead. Kenny couldn't help but shift around uncomfortably in his seat at the awkward silence that hung in the air. It was puzzling how this silence between them suddenly felt awkward. Kenny didn't realize until that moment how comfortable most of the silences are that they share.

It came to mind that something must be troubling him. Kenny stole a quick glance towards the driving boy, but shrank back at the expression planted on his face. He wasn't positive if he should ask what was wrong or simply sit there until Craig calmed down.

Once they had pulled into the Tuckers' drive way, Craig shut the engine off. Kenny opened the passenger door, casting Craig another glance as if silently willing the boy to get out as well. Instead, Craig sat there with his jaw clenched tightly as gray eyes glowered at the house looming before them.

Kenny sighed, shutting the door behind him and sitting still in the uncomfortable truck seat. He kept getting a gloomy vibe from Craig who was sitting with his back stiff and hands gripping the steering wheel. "Are you okay?"

"Just peachy," Craig growled through gritted teeth. Kenny flinched at the bitter sound in his voice. Craig sighed through his nose. Kenny knew that Craig had saw the reaction Kenny made. Those burning hazel eyes meet Kenny's, making his stomach do twists.

"Let's go somewhere."

Kenny raised an eyebrow in confusion, wrinkles forming on his forehead. "Where?"

"Anywhere. Away from here."

The way Craig spoke worried Kenny to no ends, but he agreed and Craig was soon starting the engine back up and exiting the driveway. _There's definitely something wrong with him_, Kenny thought as the scenery blurred by.

They were soon found at the park. Around this time of the year, the town's park was mostly barren with the exception of a couple of stoners. Today, the only people here were Craig and Kenny.

Craig parked on the side of the street and as soon as the engine was cut off, he hopped out of the truck and was soon making his way towards a set of swaying swings. Kenny stumbled as he went to catch up to the long-legged boy.

He took the empty seat near Craig, reliving all the memories this park gave him. It was another escape from his family when he was a kid, like Stark's Pond was. Apparently this was Craig's escape place as well.

They swung in short motions while listening to the occasional dog bark down the street or the sound of the branches rub against each other in the breeze. Almost peaceful if he didn't feel as stressed as he was.

"Alright," Kenny finally started before the silence between them drove him insane, "What's up?"

He watched as Craig swallowed, looking down at the snow-covered grass with blank eyes. "Why do you care?" he finally asked.

Kenny felt stumped as he pondered this question. He wasn't sure what to say. Talking to Kyle or Stan about their problems was always easy. But talking about Craig's was as if trying to defuse a bomb that had two wires that were both red. One would make him explode while the other would defuse him. Kenny took a wild stab in the dark.

"You're my friend. And I don't like seeing you this way."

The expression Craig now wore was unreadable. Kenny prayed that he didn't cut the wrong wire. The silence was unbearable and for a moment, Kenny thought Craig wasn't going to answer him.

Kenny almost jumped when Craig spoke. "I get into a lot of arguments with my dad. Sometimes they can get pretty bad. I mean, I have a terrible temper and so does he. When they collide, you know it won't turn out well."

Kenny felt proud about Craig actually telling him what was wrong. Although, helping Craig would differ extremely from the way he helped Kyle. Different people need different solutions. The solution Kenny was about to say was pretty bad, but it was a start.

"Why don't we get your mind off of it. Bebe is supposed to have a party tomorrow night. Supplying stuff us children shouldn't have. Why don't you come with me?"

Craig looked up from the ground to meet a slightly pleading gaze. "Come on, Craig. Besides, I need a date." Kenny wiggled his eyebrows at the joke, grinning widely as Craig chuckled. "Well, I won't be going as a date. More like a friendly acquaintance."

Kenny shrugged his shoulders as he kicked out further on the swing, "Either way. You're comin' along with me."


End file.
